“The Pentagon said U.S. military forces dropped the largest non-nuclear bomb in Afghanistan on Thursday,” Rachel Cao reports for CNBC.

“This is the first time the GBU-43 bomb, known as the ‘mother of all bombs,’ has ever been used in combat, according to Adam Stump, the Pentagon spokesman,” Cao reports. “The bomb contains 11 tons of explosives and is formally known as the Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) bomb.”

As news broke, the DJIA ceded early gains and moved into the red (-$85.15 (-0.41%) to $20,506.71). Apple dropped from a high of $142.38 to $141.79 as news broke.

Cao reports, “Stumps says the bomb was dropped on cave complex believed to have Islamic State fighters.”

“The [GPS-guided] bomb was dropped by an MC-130 aircraft, operated by Air Force Special Operations Command, according to the military sources,” Barbara Starr and Ryan Browne report for CNN.

“The military is currently assessing the damage. Gen. John Nicholson, commander of US forces in Afghanistan, signed off on the use of the bomb, according to the sources,” Starr and Browne report. “Authority had to be sought from Gen. Joseph Votel, commander of US Central Command.”

Which “new war”?? Syria has been going on for a while. We’ve been fighting war(s) on multiple fronts for many years. Obama (not a political statement) increased the number of fronts. We “pulled” troops and replaced them with “contractors” as a PR move to claim we didn’t have troops on the ground. Don’t be naive.

yet, it was the Democrat Party that seceded the South and instigated civil war in support of slavery, and when the Republican-led Union abolitionists kicked their asses, they created the Ku Klux Klan so they could go “hang them there uppity nïggers.”

Militarily I must trust our Generals. It may or may not have been the right thing to do, I assume it was.

That you get joy from this however makes you evil. Lowest of the low. If it were a nuke I presume you would be dancing naked in the streets. Problem is, we wouldn’t be able to tell if you were coming or going. A-hole either way.

Anyone who knows the specifics of this kind of ordinance knows it is not the appropriate one to use against underground (cave) targets.

This was for show, and Trump’s team claiming they’re doing something when actually they are not.

The ordinance disburses extremely volatile materials into the air and ignites it. This is done well above the ground in order to get the maximum disbursal of the materials and the maximum amount of air mixed with the volatile materials. the oxygen in the air becomes a critical oxidizer to foment the explosion.

This weapon was designed to take our a very large above ground area filled with NON hardened targets all at once. A large area around the actual explosion is succumbs to the huge shock wave.

If you set off this weapon too close to the ground (in order to have the maximum ground effect) the disbursal gets severely, negatively impacted and the force of the explosion is considerably less. If you do it at optimal height above the ground its too high to get a desired effect to hit underground targets.

Either way a MOAB is not the monition to go after anything deep inside a cave. It just isn’t.

If you really want to go after caves use ground penetrators, they exist.

Ah yes. Take the word of a four star that reports to and has to please a person who wants a stunt to take the heat off other things rather than someone who was there when they were actually designing and testing the first few iterations of this thing. (You don’t think this is the one and only design of this thing do you?)

Yep, don’t believe the scientists involved. Don’t believe anyone who actually worked with the crews that came up with this thing. Trust the people who NEVER actually worked with any version of this thing. Sounds *EXACTLY* like the new age Republican that you are. (Damn, I miss the Republicans of 40+ years ago!)

So explain to all of us how an arblast/shockwave optimized device can take out facilities and such in caves under many, many (likely many 10s of feet or more) of earth. Can you explain the physics behind that? You can’t. You really can’t.

That’s why they designed and tested deep penetrators. Those go back to the first Gulf War when they new they’d have to hit bunkers deep underground and hit deep into caves by going in from above. Those munitions are VERY, VERY different than this air burst munition. Those deep penetrators CAN, if you know how those tunnels run underground through prior intelligence, penetrate and take out sections of those caves deep underground.

I agree in principle, however while this will not destroy the cave complex inside the mountain, it will likely collapse all entry and exit points into the mountain. Any external landmarks are gone, eliminating the risk of the uncovering of any entrances by peoples on the outside. Meanwhile, people on the inside suffered from loss of oxygen, collapse of many ceiling structures and loss of any hope of escape.

This just makes my day. /s I’m jubilant about the mother of all bombs finally breaking some dirt.
If we are going to fight we need to pursue victory and conclusion, instead of putting troops/citizens in prolonged danger as pussy-footing is seen as more considerate. Btw, why is this considered presidential “1st 2014”? Many voted for DT b/c he spoke in contrast of this sort of venture.

Completely wrong. He said he would do exactly this: “Bomb the shit out of ISIS”. What he said he wouldn’t do is something completely different than that, namely that he would not get us bogged down in idiotic Bush/McCain wars such as Iraq. Long, expensive, deadly and worthless.

This is one effort with one big bang and, unless a concentrated effort follows to weed out the dross, calling the drama of today “presidential” is premature at least and there’s surely no reason to think the end of ISIS is near. You’d do well to add Mr. O to your warring list. He dropped the ball big time and he’s clearly responsible for a tilting of powers in the mid-east that’s hardly favorable…unless you think Iran/Hezbollah and MuzBroHood are best when strong. If your interpret this to mean I like long, expensive and worthless wars, you need a reading primer.

Botty…
One yardstick! Abortion clinic bombings, and killings of practitioners (as well as even more innocent collateral victims) is NOT Christianity’s fault, it’s the fault of manipulator’s of Christianity.

To kill as in to murder. There are indeed cases for “life removal”, but if you’re going all “eye for an eye..” misinterpreted bullcrap on me, stop. Eye for an eye was about preventing disproportional punishment, not permission to remove eyes.

To use religion as an excuse to commit murder only multiplies the outrage.

a cynic: “Neither does Islam.” How about Muz killing Muz? Or course they do and lots of it. Look around the World. Be honest. Human history is pretty screwed…and the Old Testament testifies to such (never “teaching murder”), but what about the reality NOW? The majority of conflicts/wars happening in the World right now involve whom/what? Easy, quick and obvious answer.

“self on self crime”…what does than mean? I’ll make an assumption it’s a reply per Muz on Muz? If so, you’re incorrect. The Sunni and Shia Muz’s have been fighting since their beginnings and most of the conflicts in Africa are religiously motivated and manipulated (whatever that means), involving M against M and M against Christns. I have no idea what your beard/gowns/faith comment means, other than the Bible speaks of appearances have nothing to do with validating faith?

How about white on white, black on black Hispanic on Hispanic? How about civil wars that happen to have religious fuel added to the fire? It’s not religion’s fault, it’s peoples> When the Klan was persecuting Catholics, was it Christian on Christian, or just the Klan being douchebags and using Catholisism as an excuse? None of that is taught by Christianity, though you can claim it…

Ah yes. Look through the past 2,000 years. More wars and bigger wars have been started and fought by supposedly “Christian” countries and their “Christian” leaders than virtually all the rest.

But then I guess the atrocities of WWI and WWII don’t count in your books. The crusades don’t count in your books. The inquisition does not count in your books. The acts of the Roman Catholic Church against native American peoples (both North and South America) to force “conversion” to Catholicism don’t count in your books. The acts of the “Christian” KKK during the 1900s do not count in your books. The list goes on and on and on.

All religions (even Islam) have their true believers that strongly deny violent and aggressive behavior. Almost all religions (even Christianity) has their radical, insane offshoots that will claim they are doing unspeakable things in the name of their chosen religion.

To say otherwise is either lying or insanely naive.

Wake up and stop blaming the religion itself. Blame the people that pervert the religion for their own quest for power.

Hey, Belligerent Asswipe, this is just PART of what is in Genesis and Exodus…

GENESIS
God sends a plague on the Pharaoh and his household because the Pharaoh believed Abram’s lie. 12:17
Lot refuses to give up his angels to the perverted mob, offering his two “virgin daughters” instead. He tells the bunch of angel rapers to “do unto them [his daughters] as is good in your eyes.” This is the same man that is called “just” and “righteous” in 2 Peter 2:7-8. 19:7-8
God kills everyone (men, women, children, infants, newborns) in Sodom and Gomorrah by raining “fire and brimstone from the Lord out of heaven.” Well, almost everyone — he spares the “just and righteous” Lot and his family. 19:24
Lot’s nameless wife looks back, and God turns her into a pillar of salt. 19:26
God orders Abraham to kill Isaac as a burnt offering. Abraham shows his love for God by his willingness to murder his son. But finally, just before Isaac’s throat is slit, God provides a goat to kill instead. 22:2-13
Abraham shows his willingness to kill his son for God. Only an evil God would ask a father to do that; only a bad father would be willing to do it. 22:10
Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, is “defiled” by a man who seems to love her dearly. Her brothers trick all of the men of the town and kill them (after first having them all circumcised), and then take their wives and children captive. 34:1-31
After God killed Er, Judah tells Onan to “go in unto they brother’s wife.” But “Onan knew that the seed should not be his; and … when he went in unto his brother’s wife … he spilled it on the ground…. And the thing which he did displeased the Lord; wherefore he slew him also.” This lovely Bible story is seldom read in Sunday School, but it is the basis of many Christian doctrines, including the condemnation of both masturbation and birth control. 38:8-10
After Judah pays Tamar for her services, he is told that she “played the harlot” and “is with child by whoredom.” When Judah hears this, he says, “Bring her forth, and let her be burnt.” 38:24
Joseph interprets the baker’s dream. He says that the pharaoh will cut off the baker’s head, and hang his headless body on a tree for the birds to eat. 40:19
God brought a seven year, “very grievous” famine on the whole earth for no apparent reason (except maybe to make Joseph wealthy). 41:25-32, 54

EXODUS
Moses and Aaron ask the Pharaoh to let all the Israelites go into the desert to pray for three days, or else God will kill them all “with pestilence, or with the sword.” 5:3
God wants to be remembered forever for the mass murder of little children. 10:2
These verses clearly show that the mass murder of innocent children by God was premeditated. (see 12:29-30) 11:4-6
God will kill the Egyptian children to show that he puts “a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.” 11:7
God explains to Moses that he intends to “smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast. 12:12
After God has sufficiently hardened the Pharaoh’s heart, he kills all the firstborn Egyptian children. When he was finished “there was not a house where there was not one dead.” Finally, he runs out of little babies to kill, so he slaughters the firstborn cattle, too. 12:29
Joshua, with God’s approval, kills the Amalekites “with the edge of the sword.” 17:13
“I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.” 17:14
“The Lord has sworn [God swears!] that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.” So God is still fighting Amalek. I hope Moses can still keep his hand up. 17:14-16
A child who hits or curses his parents must be executed. 21:15, 17
It’s okay to beat your slaves; even if they die you won’t be punished, just as long as they survive a day or two after the beating (see verses 21:20-21). But avoid excessive damage to their eyes or teeth. Otherwise you may have to set them free. 21:26-27
“Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.” Thousands of innocent women have suffered excruciating deaths because of this verse. 22:18
“Whosoever lieth with a beast shall surely be put to death.” Is it really necessary to kill such people? Couldn’t we just send them to counseling or something? 22:19
“He who sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the Lord only, he shall be utterly destroyed.” If this commandment is obeyed, then the four billion people who do not believe in the biblical god must be killed. 22:20
If you make God angry enough, he will kill you and your family with his own sword. 22:24
“The firstborn of thy sons thou shalt give unto me.” (As a burnt offering?) 22:29
God promises to “send his fear before the Israelites” and to kill everyone that they encounter when they enter the promised land. 23:27
Those who break the Sabbath are to be executed. 31:14
God orders the sons of Levi (Moses, Aaron, and the other members of their tribe that were “on the Lord’s side”) to kill “every man his neighbor.” “And there fell of the people that day about 3000 men.” 32:27-28
But God wasn’t satisfied with the slaughter of the 3000, so he killed some more people with a plague. 32:35
If you can’t redeem him, then just “break his neck.” Hey, it’s all for the glory of God. 34:20
Whoever works, or even kindles a fire, on the Sabbath “shall be put to death.” 35:2-3